BILL ANALYSIS Ó ------------------------------------------------------------ |SENATE RULES COMMITTEE | SB 993| |Office of Senate Floor Analyses | | |1020 N Street, Suite 524 | | |(916) 651-1520 Fax: (916) | | |327-4478 | | ------------------------------------------------------------ UNFINISHED BUSINESS Bill No: SB 993 Author: De León (D), et al. Amended: 5/21/12 Vote: 21 SENATE EDUCATION COMMITTEE : 7-1, 4/11/12 AYES: Lowenthal, Alquist, Hancock, Liu, Price, Simitian, Vargas NOES: Huff NO VOTE RECORDED: Runner, Blakeslee, Vacancy SENATE FLOOR : 31-1, 04/19/12 AYES: Alquist, Berryhill, Blakeslee, Calderon, Cannella, Corbett, Correa, De León, DeSaulnier, Evans, Gaines, Hancock, Hernandez, Kehoe, Leno, Liu, Lowenthal, Negrete McLeod, Padilla, Pavley, Price, Rubio, Simitian, Steinberg, Strickland, Vargas, Walters, Wolk, Wright, Wyland, Yee NOES: Anderson NO VOTE RECORDED: Dutton, Emmerson, Fuller, Harman, Huff, La Malfa, Lieu, Runner ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 59-13, 8/9/12 - See last page for vote SUBJECT : School curriculum: social sciences: Bracero program SOURCE : Author DIGEST : This bill authorizes social science instruction CONTINUED SB 993 Page 2 to include instruction on the Bracero program. Assembly Amendments add coauthors. ANALYSIS : Existing law: 1. Authorizes instruction in social science for grades 7-12 to include instruction on World War II and the American role in that war. 2. Encourages instruction in social science for grades 7-12 to include the role of Filipinos in World War II. 3. Encourages instruction in social science for grades 7-12 to include instruction on the Vietnam war including the "Secret War" in Laos and the role of Southeast Asians in that war. This bill authorizes social science instruction to include instruction on the Bracero program. Specifically, this bill: 1. Authorizes instruction in social science for grades 7-12 to include instruction on the Bracero program. 2. Authorizes this instruction to include a component drawn from personal testimony, especially in the form of oral or video histories of individuals who were involved with the Bracero program. Oral histories may do all of the following: A. Exemplify the economic and cultural effects of the Bracero program during and after World War II, including its effects on the railroad system, agriculture, and immigration in the United States. B. Contain the views and comments of their subjects regarding the reasons for their participation in the Bracero program and their immigrant story, generally. 3. States that this bill is to be implemented in a way that SB 993 Page 3 does not result in new duties or programs being imposed on school districts, and declares that this bill does not mandate costs to local agencies or school districts, and that materials used to comply with this bill be part of normal curriculum materials purchased by school districts in their normal course of business and purchasing cycles. Background Academic content standards define the knowledge, concepts, and skills that pupils should acquire at each grade level. Curricular frameworks are the blueprint for implementing the standards, and include criteria by which instructional materials are evaluated. The processes for reviewing frameworks and adopting instructional materials have been suspended since July 28, 2009. The State Board of Education (SBE) is specifically prohibited from reviewing frameworks and adopting instructional materials until the 2015-16 school year. The history-social science framework was last adopted in 2005. A review of this framework was underway and nearly complete when the state suspended the process due to budget constraints. The draft framework for grade 11 includes information about agricultural labor provided by immigrants who came through the Bracero program. Prior legislation SB 48 (Leno), Chapter 81, Statutes of 2011, requires instruction in social science to include the role and contributions of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender Americans. SB 300 (Hancock), Chapter 624, Statutes of 2011, at one time included provisions relative to the completion of the history-social science framework. The final version of SB 300 requires the SBE to adopt revised standards in science. SB 1278 (Wyland), 2010 Session, would have required the SBE to adopt a revised framework and evaluation criteria for history-social science in 2011. SB 1278 was held in the SB 993 Page 4 Assembly Appropriations Committee. AB 2069 (Carter), 2010 Session, would have required the SBE to adopt a revised framework and evaluation criteria for history-social science by July 1, 2011. AB 2069 was held in the Assembly Appropriations Committee. FISCAL EFFECT : Appropriation: No Fiscal Com.: No Local: No SUPPORT : (Verified 8/9/12) American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees Asociación de Loncheros L.A. Familia Unida de California Associacion Retalteca California Association for Bilingual Education California Immigrant Policy Center California-Mexico Studies Center, Inc. Californians Together Casa de la Cultura Maya City of Bell Gardens Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles Consejo Binacional de Organizaciones Cumunitarias Inc. Federacion Chihuahua Fraternidad Cotzumalguapa Los Angeles Produce Market Association Mexican Cultural Institute of Los Angeles National Association of Social Workers Schools for Integrated Academics and Technologies Union de Guatemaltecos Emigrantes Universidad de Colima ARGUMENTS IN SUPPORT : According to the author, "The history of the Bracero program has been frequently overlooked and it is rarely taught in California public schools. The Bracero program was a guest worker program set up through a series of bilateral agreements between the United States and Mexico that was intended to fill the shortage of American labor during the war years. Established in 1942, the program continued in the post-WWII years because of the demand for labor in the agriculture business and the railroad maintenance system. The program helped the US economy flourish, though it was criticized SB 993 Page 5 for the mistreatment of Mexican workers, especially because in many instances Braceros were never paid their due wages. The program also marked a turning point in Mexican immigration to the US by influencing unauthorized immigration trends. Given the impact of immigration on this state, it is important for students to have a historical understanding of the immigration trends that have come to shape California's demographics and economy." ASSEMBLY FLOOR : 59-13, 8/9/12 AYES: Achadjian, Alejo, Allen, Ammiano, Atkins, Beall, Bill Berryhill, Block, Blumenfield, Bonilla, Bradford, Brownley, Buchanan, Butler, Charles Calderon, Campos, Carter, Cedillo, Chesbro, Davis, Dickinson, Eng, Feuer, Fletcher, Fong, Fuentes, Furutani, Galgiani, Gatto, Gordon, Hall, Hayashi, Hill, Huber, Hueso, Huffman, Jeffries, Lara, Bonnie Lowenthal, Ma, Mendoza, Mitchell, Monning, Olsen, Pan, Perea, V. Manuel Pérez, Portantino, Silva, Skinner, Smyth, Solorio, Swanson, Torres, Valadao, Wieckowski, Williams, Yamada, John A. Pérez NOES: Donnelly, Beth Gaines, Garrick, Hagman, Halderman, Harkey, Jones, Knight, Logue, Mansoor, Miller, Morrell, Wagner NO VOTE RECORDED: Conway, Cook, Gorell, Grove, Roger Hernández, Nestande, Nielsen, Norby PQ:do 8/10/12 Senate Floor Analyses SUPPORT/OPPOSITION: SEE ABOVE **** END ****